Res ipsa loquitur ("The thing itself speaks")

The Interior Of Your Car Is A Public Place

In Indiana, an intoxicated passenger in a car pulled over by police, is guilty of public intoxication.

Indiana code defines public intoxication as being “in a public place or a place of public resort in a state of intoxication caused by . . . use of alcohol . . . .”

In the case of Moore v. State, Brenda Moore had had a couple of beers and a sober friend needed a ride and Moore offered her car and accompanied the friend as a passenger. An Indianapolis Metropolitan Police officer pulled the car over because it lacked a working license plate light. The officer discovered that the driver did not have a valid driver’s license. Both the driver and Moore were arrested, and Moore was charged with public intoxication, a class B misdemeanor. Moore was found guilty at a bench trial and she appealed.

The Court of Appeals of Indiana, in a 2-1 decision, reversed the conviction. The Indiana Supreme Court affirmed the conviction. Moore’s argument that her conviction “violates the spirit of the public intoxication statute, and the policy behind its enactment” did not sway the Indiana Supreme Court which wrote:

Whether conduct proscribed by a criminal law should be excused under certain circumstances on grounds of public policy is a matter for legislative evaluation and statutory revision if appropriate. The judicial function is to apply the laws as enacted by the legislature.

The Indiana Supreme Court relied on Miles v. State for its ruling. In Miles v. State a man in his tractor-trailer cab parked alongside the highway with the window rolled down was in a public place for purposes of the public intoxication statute. One distinguishing feature between Miles and Moore, is that Moore was seized for Fourth Amendment purposes, see Brendlin v. California.

In the Moore dissent, Rucker, J. is concerned by the majority’s “declaring that the inside of a closed vehicle traveling along a highway is a public place.”

The Moore case is similar to Martin v. State, a case where the police arrested an intoxicated man in his home, took him outside to a highway, and then charged him with being drunk on a public highway. The Alabama Court of Appeals ruled that for public intoxication, “a voluntary appearance is presupposed.” A person in not guilty of an offense where liability is based on involuntary conduct.

The Moore case could have serious ramifications for those considering riding in a taxi while intoxicated.

Welcome to the PSA — Police State of America — where any time you set foot outside your house and a police officer takes a disliking to you, he can charge you with some sort of crime, and you will inevitably be found guilty, because the “legal” system will inevitably take the cop’s word over yours.

The defendant conceded that she was intoxicated in a public place. Tough to win the appeal with that admission. The holding is not about whether being intoxicated in a car constitutes being intoxicated in public, but rather that when defendant concedes she was intoxicated in a public place, defendant is guilty of being intoxicated in a public place regardless of where defendant is.

DUI laws connote the encouragement to not drive drunk and thus have someone sober to drive your car home. In Indiana I would presume this is no longer true. This Indiana case and the Alabama case cited could indicate that getting intoxicated in any milieu is criminal, providing a police officer take notice. If this is the desired trend than perhaps it should be illegal for all LEO’s to be intoxicated, at all times, since they have been made the arbiters of all intoxication.

How about being arrested on your own property for Public Intoxication…Check……

How about being in a conservative city where you can purchase alcohol, drink alcohol while you drive so long as you are not legally intoxicated….then being stopping your vehicle to go chat with a female in another car….then being arrested for possession of alcohol on a public street….then being taken to the police station…you are searched…you have 40.85 on your person…you are told the fine is 40 dollars…and released…

Here is the Kentucky statute governing the crime of Public Intoxication:

Title 50. KENTUCKY PENAL CODE

Chapter 525. RIOT, DISORDERLY CONDUCT, AND RELATED OFFENSES

Current through Chapter 106, Regular Session 2011

§ 525.100. Public intoxication

(1) A person is guilty of public intoxication when he appears in a public place manifestly under the influence of a controlled substance, or other intoxicating substance, excluding alcohol (unless the alcohol is present in combination with any of the above), not therapeutically administered, to the degree that he may endanger himself or other persons or property, or unreasonably annoy persons in his vicinity.

Note: Legislative Research Commission Note. Acts 1984, ch.205, § 1 attempted to change the effective date of Acts 1982, ch. 312 to July 15, 1986; however, pursuant to KRS 446.270,the effective date must be July 1, 1986.
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In my state, it is a Class B misdemeanor and carries a penalty of up to 90 days in the Jefferson County jail, a fine not to exceed $ 250.00, or both, plus court costs of $ 135.00.

These cases are usually settled for 1 day, credit time served and a small fine. However, it is a crime and cannot be expunged for 5-7 years after conviction.

I failed to point out that in Kentucky we also have an offense called ” Alochol Intoxication” :

§ 222.202. Offenses of alcohol intoxication or drinking alcoholic beverages in a public place.

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Kentucky Statutes

Title 18. PUBLIC HEALTH

Chapter 222. KENTUCKY ALCOHOL AND OTHER DRUG ABUSE PREVENTION, INTERVENTION, AND TREATMENT LAW

Current through Chapter 106, Regular Session 2011

§ 222.202. Offenses of alcohol intoxication or drinking alcoholic beverages in a public place

(1) A person is guilty of alcohol intoxication when he appears in a public place manifestly under the influence of alcohol to the degree that he may endanger himself or other persons or property, or unreasonably annoy persons in his vicinity.

(2) A person is guilty of drinking alcoholic beverages in a public place when he drinks an alcoholic beverage in a public place, or in or upon any passenger coach, or other vehicle commonly used for the transportation of passengers, or in or about any depot, platform, or waiting room.

“(2) A person is guilty of drinking alcoholic beverages in a public place when he drinks an alcoholic beverage in a public place, or in or upon any passenger coach, or other vehicle commonly used for the transportation of passengers, or in or about any depot, platform, or waiting room.”

Frank,

Thank you for the pertinent statutes from Kentucky. What puzzles me though is can both (I) and (2) be interpreted to mean that a “public place” could be a Restaurant or Bar? In many venues Restaurants and Bars have
“sidewalk” tables, where people can drink definitely in public. Is the LEO then the judge of who to accost, since many are openly drinking?

Mike Spindell: I would submit that drinking in a bar or restaurant in their outside “public” areas IS a violation of the statute. The reality is that law enforcement usually exercise their discretion and do not cite/arrest for that infraction only. The charge is usually in connection with another, like disorderly conduct, fighting in a bar (assault 4), etc.

FFLEO,:) I can see where that adds further confusion to the issue. Especially since the sex in cars certainly involves pubic places even though the public places is debatable. And let’s not forget all the trouble those Roman got into fighting the Pubic Wars. Hopefully we can resolve this issue without getting Carthage involved.

And here we have all of the intellectuals gathered. I must be still tripping from acid. The damn driver did not have a valid license, the passenger was drunk. What is the officer supposed to do, give the keys to a drunk? He did the only right thing. Jesus H Christ, you people whine about shit you have no control over. Were you there? Cry Baby’s.

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